Pastoral Ministry
Preaching and Crisis Management
“So I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down. Why should the work cease while I leave it and go down to you?” Nehemiah 6:3 Every pastor no doubt begins the ministry with the ideal in mind. He will sp... Read More »
Preaching and Administration
After nearly forty-two years of ministry, one major aspect of effective ministry is the ability to administrate one’s responsibilities well. Those who seem to master this art have a tendency to excel much quicker than those who do not. In Romans 12, Paul... Read More »
Preaching and Pastoral Care
When God calls a man to serve as a pastor in a local church, there are countless tasks he needs to complete. The primary tasks can be divided into several main categories including feeding, leading, and protecting. There are many ways in which a pastor accompl... Read More »
The Preacher Who Mentors: Reproducing in Others What Jesus Produced in You
When one leaves seminary, the name Charles always references Spurgeon. It is hard to imagine any seminary student that would not make that connection. He of course is a great man and one who was iconic. That is, though, sometimes the problem. We study a man wh... Read More »
The Preacher Who Cares: How Pastoral Ministry Accentuates the Preacher’s Pulpit
In a culture that is increasingly privatized, individualized and scandalized, the need for preachers to care genuinely for those to whom they preach perhaps has never been so important. Whether he chooses to acknowledge it or not, the manner in which the preac... Read More »
The Preacher Who Witnesses: How to Set the Evangelistic Thermostat in Your Church
Local churches have had legendary battles over the temperature setting of thermostats. Who gets to control the temperature in the sanctuary: the pastor or the trustees? While a pastor can concede the temperature setting of the sanctuary thermostat to the trust... Read More »
The Preacher Who Forgives: The Preacher as a Model for Forgiveness
Some Christian clichés are passed around in our circle of churches because they sound nice. They may not always be theologically air-tight. Take this one, for instance: When God closes a door, He opens a window. Climbing through windows is becoming of a burgl... Read More »
The Preacher Who Reads: Why the Preacher Who Reads is the Preacher Who Leads
Karl Barth, the famed and influential German theologian, was quoted as saying, “One must do theology with the Bible in one hand and a newspaper in the other.” I suggest that just as Barth stated that theology has a dual quality of biblical and world educat... Read More »
The Evangelism Challenge: How to Create a Culture of Evangelism in the Pulpit
The Apostle Paul depicts the clear description of the gospel in his statement, “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the... Read More »
The Expectation Challenge: The Necessity to Balance Pastoral and Preaching Duties
Within the course of a normal day I wear several hats: resident theologian, primary preacher, chief administrator, counselor, hospital chaplain, bereavement specialist, and most importantly husband and father. These responsibilities alone are more than the res... Read More »
